Damage to the Achilles tendon is a common condition. This typically occurs while playing sports, exertion without proper stretching and warm up or stumbling while walking. Damage occurs due to a rapid contraction of the muscle causing the tendon to tear. An injured individual will feel pain near the back of the calf muscle and find it painful to walk, where the leg is significantly weakened.
Following the tendon repair, activity is not permitted for up to a few weeks and then the patient is fitted with a removable boot. Achilles injuries require the footwear to have important aspects. Correctly fitting orthotic footwear is paramount in preventing further damage to the Achilles tendon, recovering from the Achilles tendon injury and preventing the reoccurrence of Achilles tendon injury. Incorrect orthotic footwear can increase the likelihood of Achilles tendon injuries, delay recovery, and increase the chance of a reoccurrence.
An important aspect to the orthotic footwear is to correctly match the wearer's individual requirements such as shoe size, width, arch, cushioning, firmness, height, heel height, and location of the uprights relative to the anatomical ankle axis and calf midline. Typically an improper fit is identified by the uprights being too far forward or too far back relative to the midline of the patient's calf. It is desirable that one size can fit all. The problem is that not all legs and feet are the same. Further, during rehabilitation, a patient will require more than a single orthotic footwear device throughout a treatment plan, as heel wedges are adjusted according to the opinion of the medical practitioner and relocating the uprights becomes necessary to ensure alignment to the midline of the patient's calf.
Accordingly, there is a need to develop an orthotic foot device that can be adjusted to fit any number of sizes of feet and legs, in addition to being adjustable to any one patient during rehabilitation.